On Friday, we woke up to flashing blue lights, no power, and downed trees. I’m thinking my Craftsman battery saws aren’t going to be able to tackle this clean up.
On the plus side, it didn’t hit anything. On the down side, it isn’t even our tree. š
We were extremely grateful to only be without power for about six hours because there are still over three thousand waiting for their lights to come back on. Thank you, Eversource employees, for working through your holiday in wicked cold weather.
While we waited for the power to be restored, we also waited for a propane delivery. Because of supply and costs here in the Northeast, the last two times we have needed propane, they let the tank go down to a level so low we thought we might run out. We were very grateful for the Christmas Eve delivery of propane, but the ‘gift’ of heat has become quite expensive these days.
Like a lot of things, we tend to take electricity, heat, wifi and all the other things we use on a daily basis for granted. When we have an interruption, it certainly drives home the need to be grateful.
Hope you all had a nice holiday weekend and that your Christmas or Hanukkah celebrations were warm and lovely.
Did you get a gift that you especially loved? We received two – a piece of artwork our granddaughter did for us and a wonderful coffee machine from our daughter and family. For grandparents and coffee nerds, it doesn’t get much better than that.
If you were like us and looking for a movie at some point, take a suggestion from our friend, Marty at Snakes in the Grass, and check out “This Beautiful Fantastic,” a 2016 British romantic drama, on Prime. It’s a good movie with several messages that we can all use as reminders. We also watched the first episodes of the new Jack Ryan on Prime and 1923 with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren on Paramount. Ford and Mirren are certainly good together.
All these streaming services are interesting with their various menu offerings. Each one seems to have a couple of shows you’d really enjoy, but who wants to pay a multitude of fees? We’ve had Prime for quite a while, and right now we’ve got Paramount for free. I like free. š
Happy last Monday of December, enjoy the week, stay warm, and travel safely if you are on the road.
NewEnglandGardenAndThread 
We were lucky to have gone through the “storm” unscathed. We didn’t get the predicted high winds, just rain and bitter cold. Thanks for the movie tips.
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Unscathed is a really good thing. š
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Glad to hear you didn’t lose power for too long. We had folks in our town without it for days, including Christmas. But, given the amount of power outages here in the last few years, no one seems to take electricity for granted anymore. Everyone has back-up generators (or solar with batteries, like us).
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Now there’s a post I’d like to read about – your solar. š
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Thank goodness we survived the storm and our trees and power were not interrupted. The only painpoints were -1 & -4 degree temperatures…which is easily fixed by staying inside our heated home. š
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That’s cold, but like you said, staying inside is a good move.
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Watching the news from over here and thinking of you in this dreadful storm! š
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Thank you. I hope you and yours are all well. The minute I see your name I smile thinking of your beautiful country and what good memories we have of our visit. š§šŖ
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Happy Boxing Day Judy! I’m so glad your power was swiftly restored. I keep reading about the folks without power all across the country. The worst situation is the Sioux in South Dakota. I am hopeful the SD National Guard has been able to reach and help many. The bitter temperatures are quite something. My son-in-law worked Christmas eve at the local code blue shelter, and stayed extra long in the morning as the homeless had no where else to go to stay warm. He said he kept the shelter open until the church service began and they could seek shelter in the sanctuary. It makes me feel very blessed to have heat. Filling the oil tank is a shock, but I am glad I put it on a budget plan last year and have been “paying all summer” for this winter’s oil.
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Hello Mary! Bless your son-in-law for the work he is doing. Spreading out the heating oil was a smart thing to do. Hope you and family had a wonderful weekend, and I bet you’ll be rocking a couple of heaters in your sewing room during this cold spell.
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You really have to admire and appreciate the people who get out there on days like that to clean up trees and restore utilities. Prices are high (and going higher in January for electricity here in CT) but when it fails, you realize why you grit your teeth and pay the bill.
Are you spending winter here in the north?
Whatever your plans, I hope you have an easy week as we say goodbye to 2022.
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I applaud all those utility workers who spent their holiday weekend out in this frigid cold trying to get folks back on line. The propane was delivered, we received the invoice immediately via email, and my husband sat down and paid it online. Thank you for heat! We are hoping to head south, but we have a couple of hurdles to get over first. š¤
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I hope your plans come to fruition.
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A downed tree and losing power is a Christmas gift you could have done without! Glad power was restored in your area in 6 hours, but 6 hours is a long time in these frigid temperatures. At least you didnāt have to worry about food spoiling in the fridge or freezer! š„“šµāš«
God bless these men and women who come out in the worst of weather conditions to get us all up and running again. What would we do without them?
Michael called our propane provider a couple of weeks ago because tanks were so low we figured we were down to sludge! I donāt know which was more frightening, the tanks being so low or paying for that delivery! š³
Wow! Artwork done by your granddaughter and a new coffee machine. Those are two gifts to make you happy for a long, long time.
Enjoy these last days of 2022. I wonāt be sorry to see it go. Tough year, and not just for us. 2023 gives us all something to look forward to!
Ginger
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I don’t know what the utility workers get paid, but it can’t be enough. I sure hope those families who have been out for four days had some place warm to go to because it has been way too cold to go without heat. Yes, the propane bill almost makes your eyes roll back in your head. š It is always nice to have hope for the new year.
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Oh, Judy! So thankful that everything eventually worked out for you. Feeling safe, warm, and cozy at home are wonderful Christmas gifts. Beautiful artwork and an amazing coffee machine are extra-special, heartfelt gifts! We had a white Christmas here, but thankfully only a few inches of snow. š The dangerous temperatures and gusty winds kept us watchful all through the holiday weekend though. So grateful that we never lost power and our water pipes were safe. We woke up to fresh snowfall this morning. Iām going to run outside and put our Christmas decorations back on the front porch this morning. I tucked them awayā¦ so they wouldnāt blow away! Thank you for the movie recommendations on Prime. Iām ready for for something new after watching way too many Christmas movies!š Wishing you quiet, cozy, final days of 2022, my friend! Stay healthy!! š
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Glad you were safe and warm over the holiday. Yes, tucking those decorations away was probably the right thing to do. I had to chuckle because I watched way too many Christmas movies too. Now, I hope they go away for a while and we have some other options. My best wishes for a really good 2023 including lots of gardening and card making. š
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Oh gosh, Judy! I braced myself while reading for a disaster like the tree atop your houseā¦whew! (Insert audible sigh of relief here, heard all the way to NH!) I guess after that, a temporary loss of heat seemed tolerableā¦.although you didnāt know at the time if it would be minutes, hours, or days. Not fun.
Bitterly cold here, too, with a record 10ā snowfall, on top of 6ā or so from last week. Roads were so bad that I postponed my family Christmas Eve gathering until todayā¦only to find that one little guy has a fever and congestion. Iām delivering dinner and presents to each family and putting a āclosed for the seasonā sign in my window!
2023 can only be better, right?
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You’ve got way more snow than we have. I’m glad your family is all safe, and hope the little guy is feeling much better. I love your dinner and present delivery and your ‘closed for the season.’ š I’m certainly hoping 2023 is better in a lot of ways for all of us. You stay healthy as we work our way through this last week of 2022.
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So glad to hear your propane delivery made it and your power was restored. Itās been in the 20ās three nights in a row. We covered our citrus trees and are hoping they will be ok. Enjoy the rest of your week. Happy New Year !
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Hope your trees make it. Happy New Year to you!
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Well that’s lovely to hear, thank you Judy.
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š
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Heavy snow, ice and wind are a recipe for disaster here in the wooded Northeast. Our lights flickered a couple times, but thankfully, stayed on. I feel for those, like you, who lost power during the holiday, not to mention all those waiting in airports. How awful!
Another bounce of the yo-yo weather this weekend, take care, Judy!
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We were grateful for only six hours without power. In reality, even though I love trees, I wish the power companies had the authority to go down the road and cut back all trees growing next to the power lines. We have a neighbor across the street who is an avid and experienced gardener. One of the first things he did when he moved in, was plant a row of evergreen trees as a block to the road but right under the power lines. Trees and power lines definitely don’t make good bedfellows, and we all pay the price. š
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After the last big ice storm, Mass. state gov. mandated the power companies to do just that. They had let it go too long, even though they were supposed to be doing it all along. Now they have years of work ahead of them. Good news for the tree workers!
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We only lost power for a few minutes, but it was a few minutes every few minutes so when the lights came on we tried to do everything we could until they went out again. I still haven’t reset all the flashing clocks. And now, the temps are dropping like crazy. It is COOOOOLD here.
Never was a gladder that we took down those dead trees in the fall and didn’t wait until nature did the job for us. The storm the other day was a doozy, but at least we didn’t get all the snow. The cold didn’t hit until after the monsoon ended. We’ve got more trees that need to come down, but none of them are next to the house or driveway. I could really live WITHOUT winter.
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I cannot imagine how cold those houses are that have been without power for four days. At the end of the six hours, we were so cold even with multiple layers, jacket, and quilt. Winter is wonderful for those who enjoy winter sports. For those of us who are retired, it is a challenge that is for sure. š
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Even oil heat requires a small amount of electricity to keep running and our fireplaces are out of commission — the chimneys need work and they are not on top of our list of priorities. It’s freaking COLD even WITH the heat on and the boiler doesn’t like intermittent power. The only things that worked were the computers, but not much because (duh) the wi-fi was out too. Of course it was.
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It was about 70 degrees yesterday, but a storm is expected tonight, with another afterwards. We are grateful for that.
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70 degrees sounds perfect! Hope the storm doesn’t do any damage just brings moisture for your plants.
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The storm has been excellent! It delivered four inches of rain since last night, which is quite a bit for our climate. There is a bit of damage, a bit of erosion, and the pavement downstairs is flooded, but that is normal.
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We’ve been very lucky with gorgeous weather here, but I’ve been anxiously reading about the storms that are impacting friends (virtual and otherwise) all over the country. I’m happy to know that you are doing well(ish) and that you’ve experienced only minor interruptions.
Thanks for the movie recommendations. We currently have Prime, Netflix, and, currently because it’s free, Apple TV. I agree that there are so many services that it’s hard to manage… kind of makes me long for the days of just four major networks, plus public broadcasting.
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Thank you for the smile and the chuckle remembering four major networks and PBS. Those were the days I actually understood how to find something, and I even got a little exercise getting up to change the channel. š
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For the last two mornings, we’ve woken up to temps in the twenties… and it’s Florida to boot! This is a winter to remember and we’re still at the start of it. So sorry to hear about your power loss. Six hours is a long time at this time of year. Glad you enjoyed the movie. We watched the special Christmas episode of “Call the Midwife” last night — well, my wife did; I covered my eyes through quite a bit of it. š Stay warm, Judy!
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Geez Marty, it was 24 when I made coffee a little while ago. Who knew FL was keeping the same temps as New England. Another movie recommendation! šš»
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So sorry to read about the tree falling and power being out for 6 hours. We only really see bits and pieces on our News about snow storms and blizzards, but it looks dreadful.
Our power was out for 3 days during the bush fires, and as you say Judy, it sure makes you grateful for what we have!
Stay warm & enjoy some good movies.
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Three days is a long, long time. Several years ago, we had the power ripped off our house during a storm, and it took almost a week and $$$$ to get service hooked back up. Hope to never experience that again. This was an inconvenience and required quilts, but it was quick.
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What a way to start Christmas weekend! Six hours without power would be terrible, especially if it meant no coffee! I realize that there are many whose health and lives are in jeopardy because of this storm, so I can only give thanks that it wasn’t worse for you. You are so very right about grandparents and coffee nerds: a grandchild’s art and a great coffee machine = Nirvana! I got some great presents, including a wardrobe of fuzzy warm socks! They make bobby sox look wimpy. You also stay warm and safe!
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Yes, there was no coffee until almost noon! Who can operate without coffee, but we found we could actually survive. š Fuzzy socks, now there’s a gift that keeps on giving.
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That tree will take some time to clean up. I was thinking of you when we were seeing the storm on the TV news. We had a lovely Christmas Day with family. Our little grandson learned the art of gingerbread house making from Grandpa and serenaded us with his version of Jingle Bells. Very cute.
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Oh, you had a perfect Christmas, and those memories will stay with you a lifetime. Grandchildren grow up so fast it is almost unbelievable. Enjoy all your grandson opportunities because one day your young man will be like mine and suddenly be 6’2″ tall.
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So true. I can’t believe he’s two already. He is so gorgeous – active and curious with lots of oral language. So much fun.
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Glad you are ok and have your power back. The utilities people really do an amazing job in some awful conditions.
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Utility workers really are like front line medical workers and first responders. We seek shelter, and they head into the storm. They certainly worked their magic this past holiday weekend.
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Glad you are both safe and well. Itās been such a tragic/painful time for some people. Enjoy the movies. Do you ever make popcorn to munch while binge-watching?
All the best for the new year.
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Oh, yes, we do love our popcorn. I hope your granddaughter had a marvelous holiday, and wish you and yours a happy and healthy 2023.
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Oh man, we’ve had our fill of trees falling on our house and property. I feel for you. Glad no one was hurt. I’d love to see your granddaughter’s artwork gift.
We’re currently on the list to get propane as well. We’re a little concerned about running out, too. This year to conserve, we’ve lowered our temps to 63Āŗ in the house, quite a drop for us. With Christmas gifts and all, it took a chunk for just 200 gallons, the minimum they’ll deliver. However, like you, thankful for heat especially with this last arctic blast. I’m so relieved we’re pulling out of it now. Probably a few more days for you up there.
We’re enjoying the 1923 show as well Tulsa King and sprang for a year of streaming Paramount +. Heads up, they’re running a 50% off deal until 1/2/23. Happy New Year Judy!
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I applaud you being able to take 63Ā° because we run between 66-68 and sometimes my fingers get so cold I feel like I need gloves which makes me think about you painting at the cooler temps. 200 gallons of propane, and I see around $$$$ which makes my head and wallet hurt. The price is bad enough without the stress of running out. š My granddaughter did a drawing of the house and put it on tea towel material to make a calendar. Nice.
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63 has been challenging but certain areas are warmer during the day because of windows when the sunshines. My studio has the greenhouse attached, so Iām able to open my door to it when itās warmer, thankfully. The tea towel calendar sounds wonderful.
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Judy, Hoping that New England will experience a thaw swiftly. It is supposed to get close to 60 here in New Jersey later in the week. Your presents sound perfect.
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60 sounds good to me. We’re suppose to hit 50 on Friday and Saturday. The plants and trees probably don’t know what’s going on any more than the humans do. š Happy New Years!
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We didn’t lose power, but had a day of high winds and rain yestrday. Our ancient big purple plum tree came down, broke off at the base. The heartwood was rotten, and the tree had grown with an unusual twist to it over its lifetime. Sad to see it go! It had not done well the last few years. I did find two shoots coming up from the roots, which I will try to save.
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Sorry your plum came down, but I’m hoping your shoots make it because I know you will enjoy watching them grow. I walked around the tree that is down in the yard and I’m still amazed at how large the tree trunk is and still not sure how we’ll get it moved out.
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A good tree service should be able to chainsaw it into logs and lift it out.
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A shame about the tree. Glad power was restored relatively soon. Thanks for the movie recommendations. I’ve been wanting to see 1923 with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. The other you mentioned on Prime is one I’ll check out also.
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I’ve only watched the first episode of 1923 so that I can spread some decent shows out. š Ford and Mirren are really good actors, and I like knowing them because most of the time I see coverage on singers or actors and don’t have a clue who they are. Age, I know. š
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I’m glad your power was restored fairly quickly. I remember the ice storm we had one year in New Hampshire. It sounded like canons going off as trees broke. We put in a generator in our barn for our 1730’s house because if we lost power, we would have no water besides not having heat. I’ll clink coffee cups with you and wish you a Happy New Year.
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Thank goodness that tree didn’t fall on anything other than a power line! Imagine something like that crashing through your roof. We had that same storm, as did most of the country, but for us it meant a couple feet of snow and impassible roads for a couple of days – but I happened to have those days off, so I thought the whole thing was lovely.
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Snow and ice are beautiful, and it is always a good thing when you can observe and not travel in it.
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I wouldn’t want to fiddle with low propane for sure! We’ve already had bitter cold this year. Crazy. Glad the delivery was on time and Happy New Year!
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I know we’re all just accounts to a company and I understand they have a delivery system, but it gets darn stressful to watch it drop so low. These new weather patterns are down right crazy.
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Weather has changed for sure!
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I’ve been thinking of you and wondering if you were north with all that snow and cold! Glad you are safe and (expensively) warm. We finally got our much-needed rain…it’s feast of famine here and we are inundated – but grateful.
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Thank you for the chuckle because, yes, ‘I am expensively warm.’ Too funny but so true. Glad you got your rain, and we have it in our forecast for a couple of days. I have to say again – applause to you and your volunteers for all that you do for all those four-legged folks who so sincerely need a friend like you who goes way beyond what the average person would do. ā¤ļø
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Judy, you didn’t post picture of artwork your g’daughter did! 6 hours is long time to be without lights. They waited in delivering our propane too. Yes! To remain grateful is a daily task for moi!š
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